“Kim,” Gerald said, nudging her awake, but she didn’t even move. “Kimmy,” he said again, shaking her shoulder.

 

     But she only moaned, “Mmm. Five more minutes.”

 

     Then he chuckled. “Come on, Kimmy. Wake up. We’re here.”

 

     And then she opened her small eyes, just to find a smiling Gerald staring intently at her. She lifted her head to see that she was drooling all over his shoulder. “I’m sorry,” she said with a yawn.

 

     “It’s okay,” Gerald said. “I was happy to watch you sleep.”

 

     “Thank you?” Kim asked, blushing.

 

     “Guys,” Matt said, popping out of nowhere.

 

     “Let’s go!” Melissa said, showing up right next to him.

 

     “Right,” Kim said, hastily getting up. "Let’s go.

 

 

 

 

     “It’s about a 3 and a half hour long boat ride to the island,” Gerald said to the girls before they got on. “You girls can go drop your stuff off in the room on the upper deck.”

 

     As the boat started moving, the girls left for the room, and the guys went to stand by the railings.

 

     “You really like her, huh?” Matt asked.

 

     “Yeah,” Gerald said, smiling.

 

     “I noticed,” Matt said with a nod. “What with what happened in their home and on the plane.”

 

     “You saw what happened on the plane?” Gerald asked with a grin.

 

     “Yeah, I saw that,” Matt said.”Mel saw you guys first and pointed you out to me.”

 

     “So why did you disturb us?” Gerald asked, emphasizing every word, his grin turning into a frown.

 

     Matt then smiled his nervous, toothy smile. And then a desperate frown appeared on his face. “Oh, come on,” Matt said. “Lighten up, Ge. You’re telling me you didn’t find that funny?”

 

     “No, not really,” he said.

 

     “Well, if we didn’t stop you,” Matt began, making it up as he went along, “you probably would have kissed her and she would have felt awkward for the rest of the trip.”

 

     ‘Matt’s right,’ Gerald thought.

 

 

 

 

     “Kim,” Melissa said, turning towards her as she stepped into their temporary room. “I love you.”

 

     “And what made you finally realize that?” she asked, sitting on the bed.

 

     “Because you met your prince charming, we’re here on this fantabulous trip!” Melissa exclaimed.

 

     “’Prince charming, prince charming,’” she mocked again. “My !”

 

     “Oh, wake up!” Melissa said. “You heard the same thing that I did yesterday. He likes you.”

 

     “What he said could have meant anything,” Kim said, eyeing her.

 

     Melissa then rolled her eyes—her signature ‘Oh, my gosh,’ move. “He said, and I quote, ‘You know I like Kim.’”

 

     “Well, so?” Kim said, trying to hide her giddiness through carelessness. But sadly, that glint in her eye is the one thing that she cannot lie to her cousin about.

 

     “Oh, my gosh,” Melissa said, covering with two cupped hands. “You like him,” she concluded.

 

     “No, I don’t,” Kim tried to deny.

 

     “No,” Melissa said, vigorously shaking her head. “You like him.”

 

     “I do not,” Kim said, crossing her arms.

 

     “You like him!” her cousin then said, pointing a finger at her. “You like him, you like him,” she said out loud in a singsong voice.

 

     “Shh,” Kim said, darting forward to cover her cousin’s big mouth. “Shut it!”

 

     Melissa’s loud gasp was evident from beneath her cupped hand. “So you do like him!” came her muffled voice.

 

     “No, I don’t,” Kim then whispered. “I just don’t want them to think so because of your giant mouth.”

 

 

 

   “Well?” Matt asked, sensing that he now had the upper hand. “Why can’t you wittily respond to that? Look me in the eye and tell me that you weren’t thinking about it and I will owe you big time.”

 

     “Fine,” Gerald said with a sigh. “I was thinking about it.”

 

     “See?” his friend asked. “I think I just saved your relationship with this girl. You should thank me!”

 

     “Yeah, yeah,” Gerald said. “Fine. I’ll get you that new Lambo that you wanted.”

 

     “Sweet!” Matt said in a sing-song voice. “I’m gonna go check on Mel.”

 

     “You go do that,” Gerald said, pushing his friend as he walked away.

 

 

 

 

     “Why?” Melissa whispered to Kim, who at the time was staring into space.

 

     “Why what?” she asked, still in the trance.

 

     “Why don’t you like Gerald?” her cousin asked.

 

     “You know about my trust issues, Mel,” she said, turning her head, looking her cousin in the eye.

 

     “Kim,” she said. “Gerald’s a good guy. From what I see, he’s a kind, caring gentleman who really likes you. I mean how can you not fall for someone like that?”

 

     “That’s the thing, Mel,” Kim said. “I’m scared.”

 

     “I don’t get it,” Melissa said, shaking her head. “What exactly are you scared of?”

 

     “He’s too,” Kim said, thinking of a proper word, “perfect. He’s the kind of guy that every girl would jump off of a cliff for.”

 

     “Exactly why I’m confused,” her cousin said. “Anyone would jump through hoops just to get Gerald to spare them a glance and he likes you. He likes you.”

 

     “Yeah, isn’t it suspicious?” Kim asked.

 

     “’Suspicious?’” she asked. “Suspicious how?”

 

     “He can have any girl he wants,” Kim said. “Why would he settle for someone like me?”

 

     “Kimmy,” Melissa said, placing a loving arm around her cousin’s shoulders and resting her head on one of them. "You are an amazing, fantastic girl. Guys are asking me to set up a date with you left and right. I'm not at all shocked that Gerald likes you."

 

     "Thanks, Mel," she said, resting her head on her cousin's.

 

     As Matt began to walk up the stairs, he whistled a happy tune. Gerald then heard some noise from the other side of the boat, where another staircase was located. He then heard the person’s foot on the last step and walk over to the railings on the side of the boat. Gerald then walked over to where he thought the person would be standing and found Kim in a bright yellow sundress ending with ruffles by her knees, leaning on the railings. Gerald smiled, seeing how beautiful she really is. He decided to join her. He walked over to where she was standing and leaned his arms on the railings next to hers. “Hey,” he simply said.

 

     “Hi,” she said with a smile.

 

     “Did you sleep well on the plane today?” he asked.

 

     “Yeah,” Kim said, nodding. “It was pretty comfortable. Thank you.”

 

     “Thank me for what?” Gerald asked.

 

     “For all of this,” Kim said, gesturing around her with her arms. “But why?”

 

     “What do you mean why?” Gerald asked.

 

     “Why did you invite me and Mel here?” she asked. “Why did you and Matt take us to that field? Heck, why did you even go to our house?”

 

     “I told you already,” he said. “I want us to be friends.”

 

     “But why?” she asked again. “Why do you want us to be friends?”

 

     “Well why do you keep pretending that nothing important happened that night?” Gerald countered. “You remember, Kim. And you know that it’s special. To you—and to me. You knew from the second you saw me. I mean, how else would you have known my name without me introducing myself to you?”

 

     Kim was speechless. He’s got her there. She knows that he’s right, and that there’s no way out of it. But luckily, someone spoke up. “Guy’s, we’re here!” Melissa squealed from the top of the staircase, holding her arms up. She was wearing a tank top with a white, see through wrap around her legs, showing the bikini she was wearing beneath it. She then stepped down the stairs, with a drooling Matt tailing behind her.

 

     “Come on, Kimmy!” Melissa said, linking her arm with her cousin’s. Kim was so thankful that her cousin had pulled her out of another close call with Gerald that she forgot to get take her luggage with her.

 

     “Did you see that?!” Matt asked Gerald as they watched the girls walk on the path going through the brush “That—my brother from another mother and father—was hot!”

 

     Gerald chuckled as he listened to his friend’s banter about how much he liked Melissa, as if he was a 3^rd grader experiencing having a crush for the first time in his entire life.

 

 

 

 

     The place was huge! It looked more like a summer mansion than a summer home. White tiles covered the floor, making the room brighter underneath the sunlight than shone through the clear, glass walls. Three couches—black, white, and red—created an enclosed, rectangular area along with a red love seat, while a bamboo coffee table sat in the middle.

 

     “This place is amazing!” Kim said as she walked in. She observed her surroundings, from the spiral staircase to the intricately carved table legs. But then something caught her eye: a door—that led to a garden outside. Her legs, as if having a mind of their own, brought her to the door. She opened it, stepped outside, and gasped in awe and amazement. Hundreds, thousands, maybe even hundreds of thousands of beautiful flowers, native and alien to the environment. She was immediately drawn to the clusters of beautiful red carnations, planted right next to the cute Japanese cherry blossoms—her two favorite flowers in the world.

 

     “Hey, guys,” Gerald greeted Matt and Melissa, coming through the door with Kim’s luggage. “Where’s Kim?”

 

     “She’s out in the garden,” said Melissa. “She’s always like that. She just loves flowers.”

 

     A smile came across Gerald’s face. He wanted to go to her as soon as he saw her through the glass door; to hold her close and bask in each other’s presence in his garden. He stepped outside and watched her admire the flowers, lightly touch them, smell them. “You like flowers?” he finally asked. She twirled around to find him smiling warmly at her.

 

     “Yeah,” she said. “Completely love them—especially carnations and Japanese cherry blossoms.”

 

     “I see,” Gerald said, thoughtfully.

 

     “See what, exactly?” Kim asked.

 

     “That we have much alike,” he said, plucking a single red carnation from the bunch. He then brushed her hair behind her ear, and there, carefully placed the flower. “You look beautiful.”

 

     “Thank you,” she whispered, and shyly tilted her head to the left and lowered it. Gerald then used his thumb and index finger to lift her chin up, causing her to look him in the eye.

 

     “How would you,” he began, “like to go on a tour of this island?”

 

     “Tour the island?” she asked. “Sure. That sounds fun!”

 

     “Great,” he said. “Why don’t we go upstairs, drop off all your girls’ luggage, and start our tour?”

 

     “Okay,” she said heading towards the door. “Sounds like a plan.”

 

 

 

 

     “Are we all set?” Gerald asked Matt later in the living room.

 

     “Mel’s still in the washroom, but I’m pretty sure she’s almost done,” Matt said. “And Kim’s out in the garden again.”

 

     “Okay,” Gerald said. “Can I ask you a question?”

 

     “Feel free,” Matt said, crossing his arms.

 

     “Do you want to spend more time with Melissa?” he asked with that glint in his eye. The same one when Matt saw the determination in them in finding Kim.

 

     “Hell, yeah!” Matt exclaimed. “Why?”

 

     “I have a plan,” said Gerald with a mischievous grin.

 

 

 

 

     They’ve been touring for a few hours now, and they stopped to rest in a clearing. Gerald then caught Matt’s eye and winked. His friend then replied with a nod. “Hey, where are we?” he asked.

 

     “What do you mean ‘where are we?’” Gerald said. “I thought you knew where we were going?”

 

     “I thought you did!” Matt said with subtle hand movements.

 

     ‘Not bad,’ Gerald thought to himself. ‘He should be an actor.’ “Well, great, Matt,” he said, feigning frustration. “Now what?”

 

     “Look,” Kim said, interrupting the two, “why don’t we just go back the way we came and try to remember?”

 

     “Okay,” Gerald said. “We probably should.”

 

     “Come on,” Kim said going back behind some bushes towards the path.

 

     “No, no,” Gerald called after her, stopping her in her tracks. “I’m pretty sure we came in this way," he said, pointing to the other side.

 

     “Really?” she asked. “I could have sworn the path was over here.”

 

     Gerald looked at Matt for help. “Umm, Kim,” Matt said. “I think it was this way. Right, Mel?”

 

     “I think so,” she said, trying to remember.

 

     “Okay, then,” Gerald said. “Come on, guys.”

 

 

 

 

     After about forty-five more minutes of walking, “Okay,” Matt said. “I know where we are now.”

 

     “Yeah,” Gerald said, “me, too. It’s starting to look more and more familiar."

 

     “Shoot!” Matt exclaimed.

 

     “What’s wrong?” Melissa asked.

 

     “I left my water over at the clearing,” he said. “I’m gonna go back for it.”

 

     “I’ll go with you,” she volunteered.

 

     “Are you sure?” he asked. “It’s a forty-five minute walk back there and another forty-five minute walk just to get back here.”

 

     “Yeah,” Melissa said. “I’ll be fine. Come on, let’s go.”

 

     After the two left, Gerald turned to Kim. “Are you tired?” he asked.

 

     “No,” she said. “I’m fine. Let’s go?”

 

     “Okay,” he said. “Are you sure?”

 

     “Yeah,” she said. “I mean, unless you wanna take a break, I can wait.”

 

     “What?” he asked. “Me? Please. I can run a marathon.”

 

     “Uh-huh,” Kim said. “Okay, Mr. Macho, let’s keep moving.”

 

     “Okay, let’s go,” he said, picked her up, and carried her bridal style.

 

     “What are you doing?” she asked, moving her legs, trying to squirm free of his grasp.

 

     “I don’t want you to get tired,” he said simply and started walking.

 

     “Gerald!” she exclaimed. “Put me down. I have two legs, I intend to use them!”

 

     “Stop squirming, Kim,” he said, adjusting her in his arms. “I might drop you.”

 

     “Good!” she said, squirming even more. “Either that or put me down.”

 

     “Fine,” he said, gently placing her feet back on the ground. “But tell me if you get tired, okay?”

 

     “Yeah, yeah,” Kim said, waving a hand in the air behind her, already walking ahead of him. Gerald shook his head and chuckled to himself as he began to follow her.

 

     Several minutes later, they came across a fork in the road. “Umm, Ge?” she asked. “Which way do we go?”

 

     “I’m not sure,” Gerald said. “I don’t think I’ve been to these parts of the woods before.”

 

     “You’ve got to be kidding me,” she said. “Where are Matt and Mel? They’ve been gone for a while now.”

 

     "Look, Kim,” Gerald said. “It’s okay. Matt and Melissa probably have already found their way back, since Matt had explored more of these woods than I have and will probably come looking for us.”

 

     “Yeah, uh-huh,” Kim said. “’Probably.’”

 

     “I’m really sorry, Kim,” he said. “I promise I’ll make it up to you.”

 

     “Okay, fine,” she said, giving in. “But it’s getting dark. We better find a place to turn in for the night.”

 

     “You’re right,” he said. “Just go right. Right may be right.”

 

     “Ha, ha, ha,” Kim laughed sarcastically.

 

 

 

 

     “It was lucky you found this cave, Ge” Kim said, sitting next to the bonfire.

 

     “I know,” Gerald said. “At least we have somewhere to sleep tonight.”

 

     “Yup,” she said lying down on the ground.

 

     “Oh, here,” Gerald said, reaching into his backpack and pulling out a sleeping bag.

 

     “You have sleeping bags?” she asked, surprised.

 

     “Yeah,” he said. “I take them with me just in case something like this happens. Believe me, this is not the first time Matt and I got lost in these woods. I have two sleeping bags in my backpack and he has two in his.”

 

     “Wow,” Kim said, fixing herself in the sleeping bag.

 

     “Oh, no,” she heard Gerald mutter.

 

     “What’s wrong?” she asked, worried.

 

     “I think I grabbed the wrong backpack,” he said.

 

     “Huh?” she asked confused.

 

     “This one only has one sleeping bag,” he said, looking at her.

 

     “Oh,” she said. “Why didn’t you check before we left?”

 

     “I could have sworn I got the one with two sleeping bags,” he said. But what Kim is unaware of is that, he made sure that there was only one sleeping bag.

 

     “Well,” she said, “here. You can have this one.”

 

     “No, no,” he said. “It’s okay. I’ll sleep here.”

 

     “No,” she said. “Why don’t we just—“ she hesitated, “—share this one?”

 

     “Are you sure?” he asked.

 

     “Yeah,” she said. “I mean, it’s big enough to fit both of us. So why not?”

 

     “Thanks,” he said, crawling into the sleeping bag with her. “Goodnight, Kim.”

 

     “’Night,” she said, and closed her eyes. Gerald stayed awake, again watching her sleep. To his surprise, she turned to her side and placed an arm and a leg over him. His smile broadened. He fell asleep, his head, resting next to hers.